


And If He Never Comes For You

by phantomwised



Category: Homestuck
Genre: 2nd person POV, F/M, Kind of sad at times, READER INSERT FOR MY FRIEND, lime!, tradefic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-31
Updated: 2012-03-31
Packaged: 2017-11-02 20:18:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/372973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomwised/pseuds/phantomwised
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You don't know the strange man who stands on the roof of your apartment building, but you want to.</p><p>X-X-X<br/>For a fic trade with my friend. Contains a lime but not The Full Sex sorry people.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And If He Never Comes For You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [leptomedusa on Tumblr](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=leptomedusa+on+Tumblr).



> For Eva, who has the biggest ladyboner for Guardian!Dave. Design based on Hamletmachine's drawing: http://hamletmachine.tumblr.com/post/20098087713/ah-forgot-to-mention-this-is-a-guardian-dave
> 
> She asked for this in a fictrade, but I started thinking that Dave was sent to be a guardian at the same time that Jane and Jake lived, but Dirk and Roxy went 400 years in the future, so Dave had no one to protect. What exactly is a guardian to do without a kid? Does he even have a purpose anymore?

He was there again, just like usual.

You shaded your eyes against the sunlight as you cast your gaze skyward, blocking out the searing Houston sun. From the crowded street, it was nearly impossible to make out the silhouette against the sky. No one ever seemed to notice him but you.

Sighing, you readjusted the strap of your shoulder-bag, tearing your eyes from the dot atop the apartment building to grab the door.

The air conditioning hit you in the face, freezing the Texas heat almost painfully. You shivered, wondering why the hell the owner of this shitty building would keep it so cold. People practically needed to wear a sweater in here!

The elevator had a note taped to the doors, _‘out of order. Sorry for any inconvenience’_ hastily Sharpied onto it. Really? They’d only gotten it fixed last week!

You ascended the stairs quickly enough, knowing your purpose and heading straight for the top. Supposedly, the door to the roof should have been locked, security measures and whatnot. It never was.

The metal swung open with a loud _clang_ , and you winced. You hoped he hadn’t left.

Stepping out onto the roof, you found yourself missing the frigid AC, now stranded directly beneath the broiling sun. A sea of highrises and skyscrapers spread out all around you, heat emanating from the entirety of Houston in visible waves.

Then, of course, there was him.

He stood in the same position you had glimpsed him in from the ground. Perched on the precipice of the roof in a way that should have seemed precarious, but it seemed ridiculous to entertain the notion that _he_ could fall.

He’d stood there every day. Almost all day, for as long as you’d lived in the building. You didn’t know anything about him, not even his name. All you knew was that he was a man who could stand out all day under the Texan sun, in a three-piece suit. 

He was probably crazy.

But somehow, you didn’t think he was weird. In some weird way, you thought he was…sad. You would come up to the roof every day, leaving him a bottle of juice or water under the shade of the water barrel (the thing was suspended high above the building, and quite literally the _only _source of shade on the roof), and he had never once looked at you. Not once.__

__You got the feeling that he was lonely. Waiting for someone._ _

__As it was, you could already feel the sweat begin to roll down your back, and hurried over to the shade. Rummaging through your bag, you found the drink you had picked up for him today. Apple juice. Setting it on the ground, you gave the man one more long look. He didn’t look back._ _

__You headed back into the building, just barely catching the turn of his head towards the bottle you’d left him. You probably would have missed it if not for the way the sun glinted off of his sunglasses._ _

__\------------_ _

__Things went on unchanged for another week. Every day, you would bring a drink to the man on the roof of your apartment building, feeling like you were helping him, somehow._ _

__You would stay, sometimes if it wasn’t too hot, admiring him in his suit. The material was black and white, with strange wrist cuffs quite unlike anything you had ever seen. His hair was blonde, light enough that it looked fake, and when the sun shone on it you would swear it looked white._ _

__He was tall, but seemingly without bulk to back up the height. Lean, like a swimmer or runner, although it was hard to tell in his thick clothes. Young, if you had to guess, close to your own age._ _

__This time, you offered a small greeting as you entered the roof, making sure not to bang the door. He didn’t reply, but his head tilted in the tiniest nod. It was more response than you normally got for your troubles._ _

__You pulled out your latest offering, a simple bottle of water, walking to place it in the shade. However, fluttering in the slight breeze, a piece of paper caught your eye. A sticky note, stuck onto the cement._ _

__ thanks _ _

__The message was accompanied by quite possibly the shittiest drawing you had ever seen, making you laugh. Seriously, mouths couldn’t even _do that!__ _

__Smiling, you looked to his spot on the ledge. He was still there, but his shoulders were squared and tense. You knew the note was from him; who else would be leaving a message up here?_ _

__It felt wonderful to know that he appreciated it._ _

__“You’re welcome.” You said simply, setting the water down. His shoulders relaxed._ _

__You supposed this was as good a start as any._ _

__\------------_ _

__This time you were going to take it one step further. Ever since the first note, you had found one stuck to the ground every day. Just one sentence and an awful drawing. Sometimes it wasn’t even a thanks: the last one had read ‘shit its like christmas up in here.’_ _

__You supposed it was just his way of communicating with you, since he didn’t seem likely to abandon his post keeping watch over Houston. Heck, you didn’t even know if he _could_ leave!_ _

__“Hey!” You greeted him as you came out onto the roof, another bottle of apple juice already in hand._ _

__This time, instead of heading toward the shade of the water cylinder, you headed straight toward the ledge. And of course, by extension, the man himself. He is still just _the man on the roof_ to you. You still don’t know his name. Or even if he has one._ _

__You step right up to the ledge beside him, watching his carefully schooled expression. Setting the juice at his feet, you folded yourself into a sitting position, letting your feet dangle over the edge of the building._ _

__He kept his gaze directed out over the city, but he fidgeted slightly, as if he was unused to such proximity._ _

__“So, what’s your name?” You asked nonchalantly, trying to ease the both of you into this._ _

__He doesn’t answer. You didn’t expect him to._ _

__But you were surprised to see the note the next day._ _

__ dave _ _

__\-----------------_ _

__“Dave!” You call, swinging the roof door open, “Apple or fruit punch?”_ _

__Glancing slowly over his shoulder (a magnificent feat, to have him moving around you so much), he pointed to the hand holding the apple juice. You tossed it to him and he caught it one-handed._ _

__“I’m just going to give up on bringing you anything else from now on,” you say, claiming your usual spot on the edge, “It would save me the money if I just bought you apple juice in bulk.”_ _

__“You don’t have to buy it at all.” He stated. His voice was deep, yet quiet, like he hadn’t used it in a very long time. You guessed it could be true; he’d only been on speaking terms with you for a couple of days. You’d never heard him utter a word before that._ _

__“You stand out here all day wearing a black suit without moving,” you pointed out, “I’m not judging you for it. But the least I can do as a concerned citizen is make sure you don’t keel over from dehydration.”_ _

__He make a noncommittal grunt, which you suppose could have been a dismissal or an assent._ _

__“Come on, sit down for once?” You asked, gesturing to the spot where he was standing._ _

__He seemed torn, weighing the idea like he was holding it in his hands. After a couple of minutes, he seemed to resign himself to breaking his tradition of standing for hours on end. He sat down beside you, uncaring of the high-quality suit pants he was dirtying._ _

__On this level, you could see his eyes behind his shades in profile. Warm red, squinting with worry out to the horizon._ _

__Dave was a very sad person, you knew. You didn’t know why, or what was going on; he’d never told you. You just got the feeling that he was waiting for someone who would never show up, and he didn’t know what to do with himself. Something had happened that had hurt him, and he would never be able to get closure on it._ _

__It made your heart ache for the poor man. If you had to describe this enigmatic Dave Strider, it would be as a Bereft Guardian._ _

__\----------_ _

__Time passed sluggishly, as if it was loathe letting the two of you go. Dave’s voice lost the rough, unused quality it once held as he spoke freely. He laughed sometimes, but mostly it was you, laughing at some obscenely hilarious joke made by the blonde-haired man._ _

__Time spent on the roof slowly became the highlight of your day. You never saw Dave anywhere else._ _

__It was practically ritualistic: you would return from work, bearing a bottle of apple juice for your roofbound friend, and the two of you would enjoy each other’s company for the following hours._ _

__You had to admit, Dave was an attractive man. Of course, it was slightly stifled by this half-covered face and attitude. Acting the coolkid might have made him a real character when he was younger, but at this age it made him a bit of a douchebag. His demeanour was certainly passed down from childhood, and you knew that his glasses served to hide his sad eyes._ _

__Always Dave with his sad eyes._ _

__“Who are you waiting for?” You asked him one day, tucking your knees up under your chin. His mouth pressed into a thin line._ _

__Dave was quiet for the longest time, staring as per usual, like the city could give him the answers he was looking for._ _

__You had almost given up on getting a reply when his voice cut through the silence, breathless and weak as a whisper._ _

__“My bro.”_ _

__You fix him a look, cocking your head to see him better. His face was as impassive as ever, but his voice was full of confliction. You felt a pang in your chest: hurt, pity, sympathy, you’re not sure what you would call it._ _

__“Where is he?” You lowered your voice to match his volume, daring to reach out and rest your hand on his bicep. He didn’t relax under your touch as you had hoped._ _

__“I don’t know,” he told you, worrying his lip for the briefest of moments, “He’s supposed to be here, man. I gotta protect the kid this time around.”_ _

__You couldn’t understand the tone in his voice, like you were missing a huge chunk of the story. About why his little brother wasn’t here, and why it fell to Dave to protect him _this time.__ _

__With a sigh you looked over the building, down to the grey asphalt, and the hundreds of cars and tiny pedestrians making their way around town. You got the feeling that maybe that’s why Dave stayed out here day after day; he was looking for a familiar face in the crowd._ _

__How long had he been doing this, standing on the roof like a stalwart guardian, waiting for a brother who might never come home?_ _

__“I’m sure he’ll come.” You said, not moving your hand from his arm. You were sure his shoulders unwound a bit at that._ _

__\----------_ _

__“Dave, look at this!” You called, dragging a cooler out onto the roof behind you. He turned, giving you a sceptic look (one eyebrow quirked behind those shades counts as sceptic for him) and walking over._ _

__His hard-soled shoes made equally hard noises on the cement, a methodical _click clop_ that if you weren’t watching him move, would have sounded like the ticking of a clock._ _

__“What are you up to this time?” He asked as you pulled the cooler over to the shade, popping the top with a flourish._ _

__“Ta-daa!” You crowed, showing him the food and drink packed within, “I figured that it’s high time I brought some food up here. I never see you eat.”_ _

__“I’m fine.” He insisted, but he didn’t refuse the sandwich you threw at him._ _

__And so you had yourselves a little picnic on the rooftop, exchanging small banter and even smaller smiles. You were elated, sitting closer than he had ever allowed you, and nudging your shoulder against his conspiratorially. He might even have chuckled a couple of times._ _

__Two weeks to get him to speak, two months to get him to move, four to laugh, and five to touch you back._ _

__Maybe someday he could act like a completely normal person._ _

__\------------_ _

__Winter in Houston was mild, particularly compared to other parts of the world, but as a native, the chill still got to you. It had never snowed, much less reached freezing levels, but you still would have preferred a cozy day indoors to a rendezvous on the roof._ _

__Dave seemed to disagree. Even as the seasons changed, or the weather got bad, he remained at his vantage point, like he didn’t know where else he could go. Naturally, you stayed with him. He was your friend._ _

__Your stoic, funny, melancholic, gorgeous friend._ _

__Perhaps you had started caring for Dave more than you should, but it was impossible not to love the guy. Going up to the roof to meet him seemed like a secret; no one else knew about it. It was special, and all yours._ _

__Today found you wrapping your coat tighter around yourself, pressing your side to Dave’s to hide from the winter wind. He seemed impervious to the cold; he still wore that strange yet attractive suit. But he did wear the gloves you brought for him last week._ _

__“You’re crazy, you know that?” You muttered, face pressing into his jacket sleeve, “I can’t believe I put up with you when I could be inside, warm and snug with a mug of cocoa and a good movie.”_ _

__He chuckled, your face shifting as his shoulders shook with well-controlled mirth, “Whoa, we got royalty over here. Your majesty, what ever are you doing out of the palace? Get inside, tighten up that corset and put those books back on your head. We got shit to get done and you damn well better be a proper lady about it.”_ _

__You laughed in turn. It had surprised you when Dave would suddenly break out in an ironic rant, but now it was an inevitability of conversation._ _

__“Seriously, you could go inside too, you know?” you rolled your eyes, “I’m sure we could find an appropriately shitty movie to suit your tastes.”_ _

__“My ironic tastes.” He corrected you instantly._ _

__“Yeah, those,” you sighed, “I’m sure I’ve got some Ben Stiller or Nic Cage flicks somewhere.”_ _

__His lips twitched, a sad, reminiscent smile._ _

__“Maybe some other time, okay?” he muttered, fingering the rim of his dark shades lightly, the way he always did when he was especially deep in thought._ _

__Breathing harshly through your nose in fake exasperation, you swung your arm up over his shoulders, the move made slightly awkward due to his height advantage._ _

__“I’ll hold you to that.”_ _

__\-------------_ _

__Spring came without fanfare, the weather shifting from chilly to comfortable almost overnight. Dave still hadn’t come inside, ever, but you hadn’t pushed the issue. As far as you knew, his brother still hadn’t been found, so he still didn’t have much of a purpose anywhere else._ _

__Now, Dave was no longer standing at the ledge, facing away from you, when you came out. He’d be pacing the roof, or leaning against the tall metal support that held up the air system. He’d give you a casual smirk when you approached, usually followed by a witty one-liner or purposely shitty pickup line._ _

__You were pretty sure you were head over heels for Dave Strider, if even the most offensive or cheesy lines could still make your heartbeat speed up in your chest._ _

__As he had ironically put it one day: he made your kororo go doki-doki. Whatever the fuck that meant._ _

__“Sup?” he stuck his hands into the pockets of his suit pants. Slouching looked good on him, even though it should have looked strange with the formal clothing._ _

__“Oh you know, same old same old,” you replied casually, “Meeting some obscure guy on the roof like any other b-rated horror movie bait chick.”_ _

__He smirked, and you masked your blush with a perfectly-timed eye roll, sighing like you were put-upon. You tossed him his bottle of juice from your bag, setting the large purse down before joining him, walking to your spots at the ledge._ _

__You stretched dramatically, leaning heavily on Dave like he was a backrest. If he minded, he didn’t say anything about it, just kept politely quiet and let you use him for your own comfort._ _

__Up this close, he smelled like iron and smoke. Not cigarette smoke, but like smoke like from a metallurgy factory. More heat than anything else. It was strangely pleasant, although it confused you, since he never seemed to leave the roof._ _

__“Now I know it’s asking a lot of you not to lose yourself in my manly scent,” Dave began, his smirk evident even in his voice, “But do you think you could unlatch yourself from my side for a bit? My arm is fucking asleep.”_ _

__You shoved his shoulder intentionally as you sat up, allowing Dave to reposition himself so that he was facing you a little more before you slouched over again. Your back met with his chest at a comfortable angle, not straight-on, but enough for a contact that made your heart thrum in your throat._ _

__The sun was high and pleasantly warm for a spring afternoon, and Dave’s heat at your back lulled you into a calm state before ten minutes had passed. This amount of contact wasn’t quite normal between the two of you yet, though you really wished it was. There was just something about Dave that made you feel safe and warm. Like he was your knight in shining armour or something equally cheesy._ _

__You weren’t quite sure when you had dozed off, but when your eyes opened again the sun was beginning to sink low on the horizon, and Dave’s arms had come to wrap around your waist, resting pleasantly on your stomach. His eyes were fixed firmly on the sunset._ _

__\-------------_ _

__One week after that, you kissed him. Sure, it would have been infinitely more romantic if he had been the one to kiss you first, but you had the feeling that that would never happen. Dave was too reserved, too good to you, to take such a leap first. Still, whenever you nodded off to sleep against him, he held you close, and on odd days his arm would rest on your shoulder a little too intimately to be considered platonic._ _

__So, naturally, you took the step for him._ _

__It was nothing special. Hell, it wasn’t even graceful. Just as you were heading back in one night, leaving your secret love behind, you’d called out a sudden, “Hey, Dave?” and planted one on him right when he turned around._ _

__You’re pretty sure it surprised him, even if his face didn’t show it. The biggest clue was that he actually let his glasses slip down his nose, revealing those ruby-red eyes you’d only seen a few times in passing. They were wide despite his calm exterior, but you refused to back down and they slid shut after a couple more seconds of your lips pressed against his._ _

__It didn’t go further than that, but you didn’t want to leave his sight. Taking his hand in yours, you led him back to your spots, curling up against each other and watching the night sky._ _

__It was a rare night that the city lights couldn’t block out the stars, or the small, beautiful meteor shower that lit the sky with streaks of orange and red in the wee hours of morning. Dave watched attentively, arms wrapped tightly around you, searching the falling space rocks for something you couldn’t hope to see._ _

__Yet he still pressed a kiss to the top of your head._ _

__\----------_ _

__“Dave, are you alright?” you asked, kneeling down by his side. He hadn’t moved to meet you today, stating seated. You were worried; usually he was up to greet you with a smirk and a quick kiss._ _

__He didn’t answer you. His eyes were closed in frustration, his glasses held firmly between his fingers._ _

__“Is it about your brother? Have you heard anything?”_ _

__He tensed immediately, and you knew you’d hit the nail right on the head. You wrapped your arms around his broad shoulders, holding the man you loved close._ _

__“Nothing,” he muttered, “I don’t know a damn thing. He should be here, should have been here. I’m getting too old, something went wrong.”_ _

__Once again you found yourself completely at a loss for what Dave was saying, not understanding any of his angry muttering. When things came to this mysterious brother of his, nothing ever made sense._ _

__“Dave, you’re what? Twenty-four?” you asked quietly, not wanting to upset him, “You’re not old at all. I’m sure he’s fine, wherever he is.”_ _

__He turned his head to you, setting the shades on the ground behind him as he caught your lips with his, kissing you gently. Your arms tightened around him, sliding from his shoulders up to his neck, keeping his head pressed close to yours._ _

__Opening your lips without being asked, his tongue laved at your mouth, warm and slick against your own as they passed over each other, sampling each other’s unique taste._ _

__Dave tasted like apple juice, although you’re not sure why that even surprised you._ _

__You made a small noise as his tongue swiped over your teeth, tickling the roof of your mouth. He pressed forward, as if drawn to the sound, wanting to bring it forth from your throat again. His hands slid along your thighs slowly, pressing gently yet incessantly on your flesh, letting you know that they were there. They found their way to your waist, rubbing along there and pressing the small of your back forward until you were pressed flush against his whole body._ _

__“Dave,” you whispered breathlessly, trailing your hand over his shoulder and down his chest. While it was true that he was thin, you could feel the contours of lean muscle, even beneath his suit and shirt._ _

__His one hand shifted, moving from your waist to under your knees, pushing them up and sliding your entire body back, away from the ledge of the apartment building. In the process, he laid you flat out on the ground, moving his attentions from your mouth to your neck, kissing and teasing at the sensitive skin there._ _

__You groaned his name again, your heart beating erratically and breath coming fast. The feeling of his body pressed up against your own was overwhelming. He whispered your name back in reverence as you managed to pry your hands away from his body to focus on his clothes, flicking each button open on his suit jacket, sliding it down and away. His shirt and tie followed in hot pursuit._ _

__Nipping at your earlobe, his hot hands found their way up under your shirt, ghosting lightly over your belly. You shuddered, feeling weight beginning to knot in your stomach. The hand traveled upwards, pooling your shirt up with them, higher and higher, until it caught under your arms._ _

__You sat up, forcing him back while your hands reached behind you, making quick work of your bra clasps and shrugging it off at the same time as your shirt. You pulled him back down in top of you, pressing your chest up against his. Your breasts felt tight under the pressure, nipples hardening under both the sudden exposure to air and how turned on you were._ _

__Smirking dangerously at you, Dave shifted his weight downward, breaking mouth contact as he trailed lower, breathing over your erect nipples, letting his tongue flick teasingly over each one in turn. You cried out at the shock of pleasure that surged through you, straight from each nipple down to the inside of your thighs._ _

__Needing to reciprocate, your hands moved down on his chest, bypassing his nipples to tease around his naval, brushing over the trail of blonde hairs on his lower stomach, giving the barest stimulation to the tensing muscles beneath his skin._ _

__“Fuck—“ he hissed, hips pressing downward, almost against his will. His tenting pants pressed against your jeans, creating friction that had you shuddering just as much as it did him. You could feel the warmth and wetness between your legs, the thrumming jitteriness pulsing through your lower parts._ _

__Dave apparently could tell, kissing you again as he let his hands trail down to the waist of your jeans, giving them a light tug as a warning. You whined, body trembling under the force of your arousal._ _

__“Fuck, Dave, _yes_ , just hurry the hell up!” You demanded, grabbing his ass and forcing his hips down on your own again._ _

__Two sets of pants came off in one hell of a hurry after that._ _

__\-----------_ _

__Afterwards, you lay curled up against his warm, firm chest. Naked and completely content even with sweat drying on your bodies, completely unbothered by the slight coolness of the night._ _

__Your head was tucked under Dave’s, resting comfortably on his chest. His eyes were shut, delicate blonde lashes resting on his cheeks. It was the first time you had ever seen him sleep._ _

__Softly, you pressed a kiss to his collarbone, turning your gaze skyward, much like the days when you had first glimpsed him from the ground. The stars twinkled merrily, and a single lone shooting star left its trail across the sky, burning out almost as quickly as it appeared._ _

__You watched its path, trying to find the reason Dave watched them._ _

__Maybe it was just something you were never meant to understand._ _


End file.
